Holds, Recalls, and Call Slips. Oh My!

Hi all. There's been a little confusion of late, about the ins and outs of holds, call slips, and recalls. It is all pretty unintuitive, so I've done my best to break it down here.

Hold = This can only be done by a librarian or certain staff members, through the Circulation module. A hold only works its magic when an item is discharged. That's when that "Item on Hold" slip prints out. So, you should never ever ever place a hold on an item that is not charged. That hold will never announce itself and will expire as the item languishes on the shelf. If an item is checked out, however, and another patron wants it, the hold is the way to go. Pay attention to which kind of hold you place, a title hold (for all items on the title) or a copy hold (for one particular item). Keep in mind a title hold essentially puts a hold on every item, and the OPAC display will reflect such. Also, please make careful note of the expiration date of the hold. It defaults to 10 days after the date the hold is placed, which really isn't very long. The hold could easily expire before the item is discharged, so I'd recommend setting that date at least a month out. [Update: If an item is In Process, a hold can be placed on it, by a librarian or staff member, in the Circulation module. Patrons cannot place holds on In Process items in the OPAC. Never place a call slip or a recall on an In Process item, only a hold.]

Recall = Again, only available to librarians in the Circulation module. This is kind of similar to a hold, except that a recall notice probably prints out for the patron who currently has the material charged, and they may start to accrue fines if they don't return the item by the recall date. (I'd have to really scrutinize the circ matrix to see if that's actually the case.) You can also place a title or copy recall. I don't think that we're really using recall too often, which is probably for the best. I'm not sure how well it really works, and I think the general consensus is that the patron who originally charged the item should have their fair time with it. [Update: Recalls are not currently enabled in Voyager and the Circulation Committee has chosen not to enable them at this time.]

Call slip = Call slip is available to librarians, and some staff members, in the Circulation module, but also to patrons in GIL@GPC. When a patron places a request for something in the OPAC, they're automatically using call slip. Whether from the Circulation module or from the OPAC, you can only call slip items that have a status of "Not Charged." If you try to call slip something that is charged, you'll get an error message. Call slips are automatically copy level actions, you cannot place a call slip for every item on a title. So, call slip should be used for moving specific, and uncharged, items from one campus to another.

A little caveat, don't try to put both a hold and a call slip on the same item/title. If the item is charged, you'll get an error message when you do the call slip, and if the item isn't charged, the hold will cause call slip to lock up, resulting in a cryptic error message. (Whenever you have a call slip that won't fill, it's probably got a hold on it too. Just make sure that the hold and call slip are for the same person, then cancel the hold.)

Nutshell version: If it's charged or has an In Process status, do a hold. If it's not charged, do a call slip. Never, ever do both. In the back end, you may place a hold or a call slip, but patrons requesting something in the OPAC are always doing a call slip.

Let me know if you have any questions.

Update: Mary Ann has graciously shared the handout she's created for Dunwoody's circ and reference desks, if anyone would like to use it. It's a great quick reference.